Okay, so what are they going to do with the fish? Are they ready to be released or not? If they're not ready to go, then they're not ready to go. The Tribe would not be releasing them under any circumstances. So the agreement is meaningless.

However, if these fish are ready to go to the ocean, and the Tribe is going to hold them an extra year, they won't be stocking steelhead next year. They'll be stocking resident rainbow trout. Many of those fish will likely lose their urge to go to the ocean, and will take up residence in the river. It's called residualization. It happens when steelhead smolts spend too much time in freshwater.

Now if you think Chambers Creek steelhead are a problem for the native salmon and steelhead in the Elwha, having millons of Chambers Creek resident rainbow trout ain't gonna make it any better.

So unless there is more information that is being reported, this agreement is either meaningless or it's going to really hurt the native fish in the Elwha River, which is contrary to what they're trying to accomplish.